Pressure differential actuated sealing member

ABSTRACT

A movable pressure differential actuated sealing member in the form of a convex-concave rigid shell that has two laterally spaced and aligned arms projecting therefrom that support said shell for pivotal and longitudinal movement relative to the interior face of a rigid spherical sector that is truncated to define an opening therein. The shell on the surface thereof most adjacent the sector supports a resilient ring. When the opening in the sector and the shell are longitudinally aligned, the ring occupies an encircling position relative to said opening. Upon a substantial pressure differential being established between the interior and exterior of the sector that tends to move the shell towards the sector, the resilient ring is compressed, and the shell acts as a door to seal the opening.

United States Patent [151 3,662,917 Hardingham 1 May 16, 1972 541PRESSURE DIFFERENTIAL ACTUATED SEALING MEMBER Derek D. Hardingham, 1030Crest View Drive, Seal Beach, Calif. 90740 Filed: June 15, 1970 Appl.No.: 46,335

Inventor:

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3/1961 Swanson ..220/38 X 6/ l942 Meyer ..220/4l 9/l942 Shieldsm. .220/38 X 7/1945 Bramson ..220/ 30Primary Examiner-George E. Lowrance Attorney-William C. Babcock [57]ABSTRACT A movable pressure differential actuated sealing member in theform of a convex-concave rigid shell that has two laterally spaced andaligned arms projecting therefrom that support said shell for pivotaland longitudinal movement relative to the interior face of a rigidspherical sector that is truncated to define an opening therein.

The shell on the surface thereof most adjacent the sector supports aresilient ring. When the opening in the sector and the shell arelongitudinally aligned, the ring occupies an encircling positionrelative to said opening. Upon a substantial pressure differential beingestablished between the interior and exterior of the sector that tendsto move the shell towards the sector, the resilient ring is compressed,and the shell acts as a door to seal the opening.

2 Claims, 14 Drawing Figures Patented May 16, 1972 3,662,917

2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. DEREK D. H9RDINH19M Patented May 16, 1972 2Sheets-Shout :1

INVENTOR. D'R'K D. Hww/mwm/ Ame/var PRESSURE DIFFERENTIAL ACTUATEDSEALING MEMBER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention Apressure differential actuated sealing member that so operates whendisposed in a predetermined position, and the pressure on a firstsurface thereof adjusted to be greater than on a second opposite surfacethereof.

2. Description of the Prior Art In certain applications it is highlydesirable to have a sealing member or door that is capable ofwithstanding a maximum intended pressure differential, and one that whensubjected to not greater than this pressure forms an effective seal,with the sealing member capable of being quickly opened when thepressures on opposite sides thereof are equalized.

In the past, it has been found that the two first requirements abovementioned militate against the third requirement, in that, when asealing member is of sufficient strength to withstand a substantialdifferential in pressure, it is usually massive and difficult to move,and requires locks or other sealing devices that are time-consuming torelease or fasten.

The present invention is a relatively lightweight sealing member that iscapable of withstanding a substantial differential in pressure, isself-sealing, and is considered to overcome numerous operationaldisadvantages that are inherent to prior art devices of this nature.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A convex-concave sealing member or door thathas two laterally spaced arms projecting therefrom that support saiddoor for pivotal and longitudinal movement relative to a sphericalsector that is truncated to provide an opening therein. A resilientopening encircling ring is provided that is interposed between the shelland sector when the shell is longitudinally aligned with the opening. Byestablishing a substantial differential in pressure between the interiorand exterior of the sector, the shell is forced towards the sector tocompress the resilient ring and effect a seal therewith, and the sealcontinuing so long as said differential in pressure is maintained.

A major object of the present invention is to provide a movableconvex-concave shell that may be operatively associated with a sphericalrigid sector that is truncated to define an opening therein, with theshell whenlongitudinally aligned with the opening also being in aposition to compress a resilient opening encircling ring to effect aseal therewith so long as a differential in pressure is maintainedbetween the interior and exterior of the sector that tends to move saidshell towards said sector.

Another object of the invention is to supply a relatively lightweightmovable sealing member of extremely simple mechanical structure, onethat is compact, is easily operated, and when subjected to adifferential in pressure on opposite sides thereof forms an effectiveseal, and a sealing member that is quick opening after the pressures onopposite sides thereof are equalized.

A still further object of the invention is to supply a sealing memberthat is held in a sealing position by the differential in pressure onopposite sides thereof, and without recourse to locks or other sealingdevices that are time-consuming to release or fasten in lockedpositions.

Yet another object of the invention is to furnish a movable sealingmember that is particularly adapted for space vehicles and marinevessels where compactness of the member, lightness in weight, andefficiency in operation are of paramount importance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a perspective view of avessel that has a first form of longitudinally and pivotally movablesealing member that acts as a door to seal an access opening therein;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of the vesselshown in FIG. 1 taken on the line 2-2 thereof;

FIG. 3 is the same cross sectional view shown in FIG. 2 but with thesealing member in an upwardly extending position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of the vesselshown in FIG. 2 and taken on the line 4-4 thereof;

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of a vacuumvessel in which a second form of sealing member is mounted on theexterior thereof;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of one of the sealing member supports usedwith the first form of the device;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of one of the sealing member supports usedwith the second form of the device;

FIG. 8 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of two spaced pressurevessels provided with movable sealing member that are connected by apressure equalizing passage, and the piping and valves used for suchequalization to permit personnel and material to be transferred from onevessel to the other thereof;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of a pressurevessel provided with a third form of sealing member;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged side eleyational view of one of the mounting usedwith the third form of sealing member;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of a pressurevessel provided with a fourth form of sealing member;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged perspective view of a portion of the fourth formof sealing member;

FIG. 13 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross sectional view of a vacuumtank provided with a fifth form of sealing member; and

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary perspective view of a large pressure vesselthat has a forwardly extending portion of substantially smaller diameterin which an access opening is formed that may be closed by one of thesealing members adapted for this purpose.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A first form A of the pressuredifferential actuated sealing member or door assembly is shown in FIGS.1 to 4 inclusive and FIG. 6 incorporated into a pressure vessel 8. Thepressure vessel B is illustrated in FIG. 1 as a recompression chamber.Although the first form A of the sealing member is illustrated inconjunction with an individual vessel B, the sealing member is adaptedfor use with any hollow structure that is subjected to an internalpressure such as a portion of an airborne vehicle or an undersea vesselor the like. In other words, when the word vessel is used herein it isto be construed in a broad sense to include any hollow pressure holdingstructure.

Vessel B is illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive as including anelongate rearward portion 10 that by a first flange 12 is connected bybolts 14 to a second flange l6. Flange 16 has a rigid wall structure Cprojecting forwardly therefrom that includes a spherical sector 18 thatis truncated on the forward portion thereof to define an opening 20therein. Sector 18 on the interior thereof rotatably supports twoaxially aligned, laterally spaced stub shafts 22 of transverse circularcross section. The stub shafts 22 are rotatably in sealed journals 24 ofconventional design that are secured to the sector 18. It is desirablethat at least one of the stub shafts 22 be of sufficient length as toproject outwardly through its supporting journal, with the outwardlyprojecting portion having a handle 26 or other means (not shown) forpivoting the shaft in engagement therewith.

Stub shafts 22 on their inner ends develop into extensions 22a that areof generally rectangular transverse cross section for reasons that willlater be explained. A dimensionally stable sealing member D formed fromeither a metallic or non-metallic material is provided that is in theform of a circular convexconcave shell that has two laterally spacedarms 28 projecting rearwardly therefrom. Sealing member D is disposedinside wall structure C. The sealing member D has a diameter greaterthan the diameter of opening 20.

Sealing member D has a convex forward surface 30 that is substantiallythe same as the interior surface 32 of wall structure C. Arms 28 curvelongitudinally as may best be seen in FIG. 4, and each has a radius ofcurvature slightly less than that of said interior surface 32 from whicheach arm is spaced a small distance. The arms 28 on the rearwardportions thereof have elongate slots 34 defined therein, which slots areslidably engaged by extensions 22a. v

Surface 30 of sealing member D supports a ring 36 of resilientelastomeric material such as rubber or the like. The internal diameterof ring 36 is at least as great as the diameter of opening 20. Ring 36is preferably mounted on a circular recess 38 that extends inwardly fromsurface 30 of sealing member D. The ring 36 is of sufficient thicknessas to project forwardly from recess 38, with the forward face of thering curving radially at substantially the same radius of curvature asthe interior concave surface 32 of wall structure C.

Sealing member D preferably has a centrally disposed recess42 formedtherein that extends rearwardly from the forward surface to the sealingmember D that extends across the recess. The bar 44 serves as a secondhandle that may be used to manipulate sealing member D relative tovessel B.

When it is desired to seal the opening 20, the sealing member D ispivoted to a position where it is longitudinally aligned with theopening 20. The handle 44 may be used to move the sealing member Dforwardly relative to wall structure C to place ring 36 in lightpressure contact with inner surface 40. The pressure inside wallstructure C is increased by means (not shown) to be above that on theexterior of the vessel, with the differential in pressure compressingthe ring 36 to effect a fluid tight seal about opening 20. It will beapparent from the above description that the slots 34 must be ofsuffcient length as to permit a substantial forward longitudinalmovement of sealing member D to wall structure C to effect sealing ofopening 20.

Wall structure C preferably has a first stop 46 on the interior thereofthat is engaged by sealing member D when the sealing member islongitudinally aligned with opening 20. A second stop 48 is provided inthe pressurevessel B to support the sealing member D in the uprightposition illustrated in FIG. 3. If the pressure inside vessel B isincreased suddenly when the sealing member D is longitudinally alignedwith opening 20, the differential in pressure on sealing member D alonewill be sufficient to move the sealing member longitudinally for ring 36to pressure contact surface 32 and effect a seal therewith.

A second form E of the sealing member assembly is shown in FIG. and isadapted for use on a vessel B in which a negative pressure is maintainedrelative'to that of the ambient atmosphere. The sealing member 50 in thesecond form E of the device is a segment of a spherical shell that is ofsufficient width to extend across the opening in the spherical wallsector 18 that forms a part of the vessel B. The sealing member 50 hastwo short stub shafts 52 that are axially aligned and laterally spacedfrom one another as shown in FIG. 5. The stub shafts 52 are pivotallyand rotatably supported in two elongate slots 54 as may best be seen inFIG. 5.

The sealing member 50 on the interior face 56 thereof supports a flatresilient ring 58 of sufficient diameter as to extend around a portionof the spherical sector 18 adjacent opening 20. The resilient ring 58 ispreferably mounted in a recess 60 defined on the inner surface of thesealing member 50, but

with the ring of sufficient thickness to the recess. 1

When it is desired to use the second form E of the sealing memberassembly, the sealing member 50 is longitudinally aligned with theopening 20, and a slight pressure asserted on the sealing member toforce the ring 58 into pressure contact with the exterior surface of thespherical sector 18. The interior of the vessel B is now partiallyevacuated to cause a negative pressure to exist therein with thedifferential in pressure between the interior of the vessel andthepressure of the ambient atmosphere forcing the ring 58 into sealingengagement with the sector 18, and this sealing engagement continuing solong as a differential in pressure is maintained between the inprojectoutwardly from terior and exterior of the vessel B. Upon it beingdesired to move the sealing member 50 to a position where it does notobstruct and seal the opening 20, the pressure between the interior andexterior of the vessel B is equalized by means (not shown), which allowsthe sealing member 50 to be pivoted to a position where free access maybe had to the interior of the vessel B through the opening 20. Detailsof the stub shafts 52 and the slots 54 that are rotatably and slidablyengaged thereby are shown in FIG. 7.

In FIG. 8 two of the vessels B are shown in axially aligned andlongitudinally spaced relationship, that have the openings 20 thereinadjacently disposed and connected by a passageway defining structure F.The two vessels are each provided with first form A of the sealingmember assemblies as described in detail in conjunction with the firstform of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 inclusive and FIG. 6. First,second, third, fourth, and fifth valves 62, 64, 66, 68 and respectivelyare provided. Valves 62 and 70 are connected by conduits 62a and 70a tothe interiors of the vessels B. Valves 64 and 68 are connected byconduits 64a and 68a to the interior of the passageway definingstructure F. Conduits 72 connect the valves 62 and 64 to valve 66, andthe valve 66 is also connected by conduits 74 to the valves 68 and 70.

When both vessels B are pressurized and the first form of sealing memberassemblies A are in the sealing position shown in FIG. 8, materials orpersonnel can be transferred from one vessel to the other by thefollowing procedure. Assuming that the material to be transferred is-inthe vessel B on the right hand side of the FIG. 8, valves 68 and 70 areopened, while valves 62, 64 and 66 remain in the closed positions.Pressure on the interior of the vessel B on the right hand side of FIG.8 is now equalized with that existing within the confines of the passagedefining structure F.

Valves 62 and 64 are now opened to permit pressure in the vessel B onthe left hand side of FIG. 8 to equalize with that existing in thepassageway defining structure F. The pressure in the passageway definingmember F is now equal to that existing in the two pressure vessels B,and the first sealing member assemblies A may be disposed in the openposition to permit transfer of material or personnel from one vessel Bto the other. Pressure in the two vessels B may be equalized by openingvalves 62, 66 and 70 while valves 64 and 68 are closed, and thisequalization taking place without in any way effecting the pressurewithin the passageway defining structure F. Actuation of the first formsA of the sealing member assemblies on the dual vessels shown in FIG. 8is preferably by use of handles 26 as described previously inconjunction with the form of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 through 4inclusive.

A third form of sealing assembly G is shown in FIG. 9 in conjunctionwith a pressure vessel B and differs from the first form in that theresilient sealing ring 36 is secured to the interior surface 32 of theshperic'al sector 18. The third fonn of sealing assembly G has acircular convex-concave sealing member 71 of the same configuration asused in the first form A, but without recesses 38 being formed therein.Two nonrotatable stub shafts 72 extend towards one another from theinterior surface of the spherical sector 18, are axially aligned, andlaterally spaced from one another. The stub shafts 72 have truncatedportions 74 as best seen in detail in FIG. 10. The shafts 72 arerotatably engaged by openings 76 formed in arms 28 of the third form ofsealing member G and these openings 76 being in communication withlongitudinally extending slots 78 also formed in the arms. When thethird form of sealing member assembly G is longitudinally aligned withthe opening 20, the sealing member 71 can be moved forwardly for theforward face thereof to engage the resilient ring 36, due to the slots78 now being aligned to engage the truncated portions of the shaft 72.The third form G of the sealing assembly operates in the same manner andaccomplishes the same result as the first form A thereof.

A fourth form H of the invention is shown in FIGS/ll and 12 that isidentical with'the first form A, other than that no resilient ring 36 isused. The spherical sector 18 has a raised ground face 73 that isadapted to be engaged by a complimentary raised face 72 formed on theforward peripheral portion of the fourth convex-concave sealing member77. The faces 73 and 75 are ground sufiiciently accurately that a fluidtight seal is provided when they are in pressure contact with oneanother.

A fifth form J of a sealing assembly is shown in FIG. 13, that isadapted for use with a vacuum vessel K that has a downwardly andinwardly extending circular flange 74 that defines an opening 78. Twolaterally spaced webs 80 project forwardly from vessel K that rotatablysupport two laterally spaced stub shafts (not shown) that haveextensions 22a. The extensions 22a engage elongate slots 82 that areformed in laterally spaced arms 84 secured to a convex-concave sealingmember 85. The fifth form of sealing member assembly J has a resilientring 86 mounted on sealing member 85, which ring may sealingly contactthe forward face of the circular flange 76 when the pressure on theinterior of the vessel K is less than that on the exterior thereof. Thedifferential in pressure will maintain the fifth form of sealing memberassembly J in a sealing position on the vessel K so long as thisdifferential prevails.

FIG. 14 illustrates a large vessel L in which a substantially smallerspherical sector 18 projects therefrom, and an opening 20 in the sectorcapable of being closed by use of a first form A of the sealing assemblysuch as described in connection with the first form of the inventionshown in F IGS. 1 to 4.

I claim:

1. In combination with a rigid wall sector that has an interior surfacethat can be subjected to a pressure greater than the pressure on theexterior of said sector, at least a portion of said interior surfacebeing of arcuate shape and extending around a circular opening in saidwall sector, a movable sealing member assembly which when in a firstposition permits unobstructed passage through said circular opening andwhen in a second position is centered relative to said opening andcooperating with said sector to seal said opening, said sealing memberassembly including:

a. a resilient circular ring having an internal diameter greater thanthe diameter of said opening;

b. a rigid circular plate of greater diameter than said opening, saidplate having a first surface on which said resilient ring is mounted,with at least the portion of said first surface within said ring beingof convex shape and having a radius of curvature that is substantiallythe same as that of said interior surface of said wall sector, saidplate being situated within the confines of said wall sector, saidconvex first surface of said plate when said assembly is in said firstposition being adjacently disposed to the interior surface of saidsector, and when said assembly is in said second position being centeredrelative to said opening for sealing the same;

c. a pair of opposed transverse shafts rotatably and sealingly supportedin the opposed side walls of said sector, with at least one of saidshafts having a portion extending outwardly of said sector, the end ofthe said one shaft disposed within the sector being generallyrectangular in cross section;

d. a pair of arms rigidly connected to said plate and extendingtherefrom into the interior of said sector, said arms being received onsaid shafts, said arms being formed with elongated slots the width ofwhich generally correspond dimensionally to the rectangular end portionof said shaft, and

e. a handle at the exterior side of said sector secured to saidoutwardly extending portion of said one shaft for rotating the same andthus said plate, said plate, upon rotation of said handle, is moved fromsaid first, unobstructed position to said second position centeredrelative to said opening to permit tight sealing of said opening by saidsealing ring when the interior of said sector is pressurized.

2. In combination with a rigid wall sector that has an interior surfacethat can be subjected to a pressure greater than the pressure on theexterior of said sector, at least a portion of said interior surfacebeing of arcuate shape and extending around a circular opening in saidwall sector, a movable sealing member assembly which when in a firstposition permits unobstructed passage through said circular opening andwhen in a second position is centered relative to said opening andcooperating with said sector to seal said opening, said sealing memberassembly including:

a. a resilient circular ring having an internal diameter greater thanthe diameter of said opening;

b. a rigid circular plate of greater diameter than said opening, saidplate having a first surface on which said resilient ring is mounted,with at least the portion of said first surface within said ring beingof convex shape and having a radius of curvature that is substantiallythe same as that of said interior surface of said wall sector, saidplate being situated within the confines of said wall sector, saidconvex first surface of said plate when said assembly is in said firstposition being adjacently disposed to the interior surface of saidsector, and when said assembly is in said second position being centeredrelative to said opening for sealing the same;

c. a pair of opposed transverse shafts rotatably and sealingly supportedin opposed sidewalls of said sector, with at least one of said shaftshaving a portion extending outwardly of said sector;

d. a pair of laterally spaced arms situated in said sector and havingfirst and second ends, said first ends of said arms being rigidlysecured to opposite peripheral portions of said plate;

e. a handle secured to said portion of said one shaft that extendsoutwardly from said sector; and

f. means including an elongate slot on the second end of at least one ofsaid arms for operatively connecting said second end to said one shaftso that said plate by manipulation of said handle may be selectivelyrotated to either said first or second positions, with said meanspermitting both pivotal and longitudinal movement of said plate relativeto said sector, said longitudinal movement when said plate is centeredwith said opening in said sector permitting said resilient ring toeffect pressure sealing contact with a predetermined interior surfacesection of said sector upon pressurization of the interior of saidsector.

1. In combination with a rigid wall sector that has an interior surfacethat can be subjected to a pressure greater than the pressure on theexterior of said sector, at least a portion of said interior surfacebeing of arcuate shape and extending around a circular opening in saidWall sector, a movable sealing member assembly which when in a firstposition permits unobstructed passage through said circular opening andwhen in a second position is centered relative to said opening andcooperating with said sector to seal said opening, said sealing memberassembly including: a. a resilient circular ring having an internaldiameter greater than the diameter of said opening; b. a rigid circularplate of greater diameter than said opening, said plate having a firstsurface on which said resilient ring is mounted, with at least theportion of said first surface within said ring being of convex shape andhaving a radius of curvature that is substantially the same as that ofsaid interior surface of said wall sector, said plate being situatedwithin the confines of said wall sector, said convex first surface ofsaid plate when said assembly is in said first position being adjacentlydisposed to the interior surface of said sector, and when said assemblyis in said second position being centered relative to said opening forsealing the same; c. a pair of opposed transverse shafts rotatably andsealingly supported in the opposed side walls of said sector, with atleast one of said shafts having a portion extending outwardly of saidsector, the end of the said one shaft disposed within the sector beinggenerally rectangular in cross section; d. a pair of arms rigidlyconnected to said plate and extending therefrom into the interior ofsaid sector, said arms being received on said shafts, said arms beingformed with elongated slots the width of which generally corresponddimensionally to the rectangular end portion of said shaft, and e. ahandle at the exterior side of said sector secured to said outwardlyextending portion of said one shaft for rotating the same and thus saidplate, said plate, upon rotation of said handle, is moved from saidfirst, unobstructed position to said second position centered relativeto said opening to permit tight sealing of said opening by said sealingring when the interior of said sector is pressurized.
 2. In combinationwith a rigid wall sector that has an interior surface that can besubjected to a pressure greater than the pressure on the exterior ofsaid sector, at least a portion of said interior surface being ofarcuate shape and extending around a circular opening in said wallsector, a movable sealing member assembly which when in a first positionpermits unobstructed passage through said circular opening and when in asecond position is centered relative to said opening and cooperatingwith said sector to seal said opening, said sealing member assemblyincluding: a. a resilient circular ring having an internal diametergreater than the diameter of said opening; b. a rigid circular plate ofgreater diameter than said opening, said plate having a first surface onwhich said resilient ring is mounted, with at least the portion of saidfirst surface within said ring being of convex shape and having a radiusof curvature that is substantially the same as that of said interiorsurface of said wall sector, said plate being situated within theconfines of said wall sector, said convex first surface of said platewhen said assembly is in said first position being adjacently disposedto the interior surface of said sector, and when said assembly is insaid second position being centered relative to said opening for sealingthe same; c. a pair of opposed transverse shafts rotatably and sealinglysupported in opposed sidewalls of said sector, with at least one of saidshafts having a portion extending outwardly of said sector; d. a pair oflaterally spaced arms situated in said sector and having first andsecond ends, said first ends of said arms being rigidly secured toopposite peripheral portions of said plate; e. a handle secured to saidportion of said one shaft that extends outwardly from said sector; andf. means including an elongate slot on the second end of at leasT one ofsaid arms for operatively connecting said second end to said one shaftso that said plate by manipulation of said handle may be selectivelyrotated to either said first or second positions, with said meanspermitting both pivotal and longitudinal movement of said plate relativeto said sector, said longitudinal movement when said plate is centeredwith said opening in said sector permitting said resilient ring toeffect pressure sealing contact with a predetermined interior surfacesection of said sector upon pressurization of the interior of saidsector.